Obesity-Associated Metabolic Disturbances Reverse the Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Properties of High-Density Lipoproteins in Microglial Cells

Lipids and Lipoproteins in Atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease [...].

Profiling and Cellular Analyses of Obesity-Related circRNAs in Neurons and Glia under Obesity-like In Vitro Conditions

Recent evidence indicates that the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, is associated with metabolic disorders such as diabetes and obesity. Various circular RNAs (circRNAs) have been found in brain tissues and recent studies have suggested that circRNAs are related to neuropathological mechanisms in the brain. However, there is a lack of interest in the involvement of circRNAs in metabolic imbalance-related neuropathological problems until now. Herein we profiled and analyzed diverse circRNAs in mouse brain cell lines (Neuro-2A neurons, BV-2 microglia, and C8-D1a astrocytes) exposed to obesity-related in vitro conditions (high glucose, high insulin, and high levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin 6, palmitic acid, linoleic acid, and cholesterol). We observed that various circRNAs were differentially expressed according to cell types with many of these circRNAs conserved in humans. After suppressing the expression of these circRNAs using siRNAs, we observed that these circRNAs regulate genes related to inflammatory responses, formation of synaptic vesicles, synaptic density, and fatty acid oxidation in neurons; scavenger receptors in microglia; and fatty acid signaling, inflammatory signaling cyto that may play important roles in metabolic disorders associated with neurodegenerative diseases.

Proteomic analysis of postprandial high-density lipoproteins in healthy subjects

The relationship between the functionality and composition of high-density lipoproteins (HDL) is yet not fully studied, and little is known about the influence of the diet in HDL proteome. Therefore, the aim of this research was to elucidate the HDL proteome associated to postprandial hyperlipidemia. Male volunteers were recruited for an interventional study with high fatty acid-based meals. Blood samples were collected before the intake (baseline), and 2-3 (postprandial peak) and 5-6 (postprandial post peak) hours later. HDL were purified and the protein composition was quantified by LC-MS/MS. Statistical analysis was performed by lineal models (amica) and by ANOVA and multi-t-test of the different conditions (MetaboAnalyst). Additionally, a clustering of the expression profiles of each protein was done with coseq R package (RStudio). Initially, 320 proteins were identified but only 119 remained after the filtering. APOM, APOE, APOB, and APOA2, proteins previously identified in the HDL proteome, were the only proteins with a statistically significant altered expression in postprandial hyperlipidemia when compared to baseline (p values <0.05 and logFC >1). In conclusion, we have been able to describe several behaviors of the whole HDL proteome during the postprandial hyperlipidemic metabolism.

Novel extraction technologies and potential applications of egg yolk proteins

The high nutritional value and diverse functional properties of egg yolk proteins have led to its widespread use in the fields of food, medicine, and cosmetics. Various extraction methods have been reported to obtain the proteins from egg yolk, however, their utilization is limited due to the relatively low extraction efficiency and/or toxic solvents involved. Several simpler and greener technologies, especially physical fields (ultrasound), have been successfully developed to improve the extraction efficiency. The egg yolk proteins may exert multiple biological activities, enabling them to be a promising tool in improve human health and wellbeing, such as anti-obesity, anti-atherosclerosis, anti-osteoporosis, diagnosis and therapy for SARS-CoV-2 infections. This article summarizes the novel extraction technologies and latest applications of the egg yolk proteins in the recent 5 years, which should stimulate their utilization as health-promoting functional ingredients in foods and other commercial products.